1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high capacitance multilayer ceramic electronic component having excellent reliability.
2. Description of the Related Art
In accordance with the recent trend toward miniaturization of electronic products, multilayer ceramic electronic components are also required to be small in size and have high capacitance.
Therefore, dielectric layers and internal electrode layers have been thinned to increase in the number of laminated layers by various methods. Recently, as dielectric layers have been thinned, multilayer ceramic electronic components having an increased number of laminated layers have been manufactured.
As the dielectric layers and the internal electrode layers have been thinned in order to realize high capacitance, the thickness of internal electrode layers may be neither uniform nor continuous, and thus, the internal electrode layers may be partially discontinuous, thereby deteriorating the continuity thereof.
In addition, while the internal electrodes may be discontinuous, the dielectric layers may be partially thickened or thinned, even in the case in which the dielectric layers have the same average thickness, and thus, insulating properties in thinned portions of the dielectric layer may be deteriorated, resulting in deteriorated reliability.
Meanwhile, as the number of laminated layers is increased in order to realize high capacitance, the number of internal electrodes may also be increased, and moreover, continuity rates of the internal electrodes are varied according to positions of the internal electrodes due to a difference in an amount of residual carbon according to the positions of the internal electrodes and in sintering rates of the dielectric layers, at the time of firing a laminate, resulting in deteriorated reliability.
That is, a reduction in capacitance and a deterioration in reliability may occur due to differences in continuity between internal electrodes in a middle area of the multilayer ceramic electronic component and internal electrodes in upper and lower areas thereof.
In order to solve the foregoing problems, attempts at altering the composition of common materials in an internal electrode paste or altering process conditions for firing, calcining, or the like have been made, but sufficient effects may not be obtained thereby.